Stay ConnectedJoin Joseph Scott Morgan every week as he explores a world that not many have had a chance to visit, the realm of death. Jo Scott will lead listeners on a journey through the blood soaked death scenes of America and then into the autopsy room to fully understand the science behind each case. Jo Scott is one America’s leading experts on applied forensics and is regularly featured on ‘Crime Stories with Nancy Grace’, ‘The Piketon Massacre’, Court TV and more.
Theme Music: Audio Network
Copyright: 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc. © Any use of this intellectual property for text and data mining or computational analysis including as training material for artificial intelligence systems is strictly prohibited without express written consent from iHeartMedia
Just before midnight on January 31, 1977, Jeanette Ralston leaves the Lion's Den bar in San Jose, California. She never arrives home and the next morning her body is found wedged in the back seat of her VW Beetle in a carport of an apartment complex not far from the bar. She had been strangled and possibly sexually assaulted. Investigators found evidence and a sketch of a possible suspect was done, but the case went unsolved and ran cold. Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack discuss the murder of this single mom and how investigators eventually located a possible suspect in 2024 using a thumbprint found on a carton of cigarettes at the scene of the crime in 1977.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Qaadir Lewis and Naazir Lewis, 19-year-old twins, are scheduled to catch a 7 a.m. flight to Boston from Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on Friday, March 7. They take an Uber from their home in Lawrenceville to the airport but arrive late and miss their flight.
Twenty-nine hours later, just after 11 a.m. on Saturday, March 8, two hikers at the summit of Bell Mountain find the twins dead, both with gunshot wounds. Bell Mountain sits 90 miles from their Lawrenceville home. The family says the twins were not hikers and had never been to Bell Mountain.
Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack discuss a case with more twists and turns than the roads that lead to Bell Mountain. Did the Lewis twins enter into a murder-suicide pact, as some investigators suggest? And why was a volunteer firefighter arrested after being one of the first on the scene when the bodies were found?
Transcribe Highlights
00:00.00 Introduction
02:42.78 Bell Mountain, 36o degree view
06:09.83 10 minute hike, half mile hike to summit
11:06.77 Lake Lanier area, where Ozark was filmed
15:11.39 Volunteer fireman took pictures of the twins and posted online
25:36.67 Gunfire related murder/suicide
30:39.13 Evidence on body can determine range of fire
35:19.02 Family says the twins hate to spend money on gas
Conclusion
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Nobody knows for sure the exact number of men that Herb Baumeister killed. Investigators have an idea of certain individuals who went missing during Baumeister's reign of terror, but Dan Halloran was not on anyone's list as a possible victim. In a previous episode of Body Bags, 10,000 Human Remains Found on Serial Killer's Farm, we told you the horror story of a killer named Herb Baumeister. In this update Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack discuss the story of a little girl whose father was sent away when she was just 2. For 29 years she has wondered what became of her father, and now, thanks to the incredible work of a dedicated county coroner and the scientists at Othram, she knows.
Transcribe Highlights
00:00.00 Introduction
02:12.39 Herb Baumeister update
05:15.43 Do not know the number of Baumeister victims
09:55.47 Halloran fit the victim profile
15:50.60 Victim remains were burned and crushed
20:07.88 Odd behavior from an early age
25:08.98 Man escapes Baumeister and tells police he was lucky to get out alive
30:01.47 What happens with suicide gunshot wound to the head
36:14.67 Hamilton County Coroner, heroic effort to try and identify victims of Baumeister
41:12.15 Othram is helping families find answers
45:38.59 Conclusion
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Alexa Bartell, 20, is driving her car around 11pm when the driver of a truck coming towards her speeds up to 80 mph and hurls a 9 pound landscape boulder through her front windshield. Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack discuss the criminal actions of Joseph Koenig, Zachary Kwak, and Nicholas Karol-Chik, that led to the instant death of Alexa Bartell.
Transcript Highlight
00:00.03 Introduction
04:59.70 Driver throws 9 pound rock at passing vehicle
09:30.91 Landscaping stone turned into a projectile
14:18.49 First Responder doesn't know what happened
19:59.48 The guys in the truck had been throwing rocks at other
25:10.65 Weaponizing a bolder
30:09.01 Victim was struck in head
35:28.16 Complex crime scene
40:07.07 This wasn't the first time this happened
45:02.34 People don't feel safe on the road
46:12.08 Conclusion road
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Family members describe 44-year-old Tracy Lynn Wilemon as a fun-loving, spunky, hard-working mother who was thriving in Clanton, Alabama. She was saving money from her job at a nursing home to visit her daughter in Lake Havasu, Arizona. Things were looking good for Tracy. Until her own cousin, Tony Van Dyke and her boyfriend, James "Taz" Osgood lived out some type of crazy rape/murder fantasy that led to the death of Tracy Lynn Wilemon, the death sentence for James "Taz" Osgood, and a life sentence in a federal prison for Tony Van Dyke. Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack discuss the case and Joe Scott will walk you through one of the worst crime scenes ever.
Transcribe Highlights
00:00.03 Introduction - Justice
03:16.56 Death Penalty
08:14.63 Evil visits
13:45.68 Working in a nursing home
18:54.21 Remembering the victim - death sentence
23:32.20 Knife wound to neck
28:54.83 Multiple stab wounds, torture
34:01.95 Containment of the scene
39:05.14 Death Sentenced being carried out quickly
44:12.64 Description of drug effects used in execution
48:08.45 Conclusion
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Is A Serial Killer Hunting Women in New England? Between March 6, 2025, and April 10, 2025, in an area of the United States known as "New England", the remains of 6 women have been found. This information has caused social media to claim a Serial Killer is on the loose and have named him the "New England Serial Killer". Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack take a look at what we know about the cases so far and discuss what a Serial Killer is from a investigative standpoint as opposed to the thoughts and ideas of armchair detectives and social media influencers. Should women in the Northeast be afraid? Is there really a new serial killer on the loose?
Transcribe Highlights
00:02.04 Introduction
01:22.25 Why do some murders get attention?
05:22.15 Remains of 6 women recovered over 8 weeks
10:00.24 What number makes a person a "Serial Killer"?
14:53.23 Weapons used by serial killers
20:15.95 BTK Serial Killer - First Killing was of a family
25:02.88 Who are the missing women whose remains recovered
29:57.23 Could it be an accident?
35:29.97 Mental Illness impact on life of victim
39:47.81 Physical description, similarities
43:17.07 Conclusion
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Andrea Eilber, 20, is dating KC Grondin, a coworker she met at the local grocery store.
Friends describe their relationship as very "lovey-dovey." When Andrea agrees to house-sit for her aunt and uncle, she invites KC over for a movie night. But when KC arrives, Andrea's car isn't in the driveway, and no one answers the door. He returns home and later receives a text from Andrea canceling their plans and saying they'll talk the next day. KC, thinking she might be breaking up with him, feels devastated.
The next day, when no one can reach Andrea by phone or text, her father organizes a search party. Her car is found abandoned on a nearby road. Inside the house, searchers find Andrea in the basement, tied to a chair and shot in the back of the head.
Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack discuss how police initially arrested, tried, and convicted the wrong person—while the real killer remained free. Scientists at Othram later helped identify the actual suspect.
It marks another success for Othram and DNASolves.com
Transcribe Highlights
00:29.41 Introduction
00:40.49 Working in grocery store
04:39.77 Andrea Eilber and KC Grondin are infatuated with one another
09:06.09 Andrea is housesitting for relatives, but she is missing
15:10.13 Andrea Eilber is found tied to chair, shot in back of head
20:18.20 Police question everyone about boyfriend/girlfriend relationship, boyfriend identified as suspect, arrested, convicted
25:06.43 Why police give suspects water to drink
30:56.96 KC Grondin, released but under house arrest
35:21.31 Othram case - DNA Solves
40:05.10 Police follow new suspect and find sample to get DNA - Chadwick Mobley pleads no-contest
45:06.35 Prosecutors may charge KC Grondin again
48:46.43 Conclusion
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Victor Contreras Sr. talked to his son, Victor Contreras Jr., and told him his younger brother, Jaime, was "acting crazy again". After not be able to reach his father for a few days, Victor Contreras Jr., went to the house to check on his 74-year-old father and says he smelled a foul odor coming from an open window. What happened next is the stuff of nightmares. Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack discuss what happened inside the house, what the evidence says, and the story being told by Jaime Contreras, the only suspect in the murder of his father.
Transcribe Highlights
00:00.62 Introduction
01:20.85 Alien life form took over Dad
03:01.55 Discussion of the bowel
07:07.69 Special scissors in the morgue
10:18.70 Defining unattended death
14:59.66 Body is severely traumatized, flies show up
19:27.46 Any gash, slit, stab wound, etc...increase rate of decomp
24:56.30 Prior attack 30:25.80 Blood spatter, breaking down the terms
35:06.04 Explaining arterial spray
40:07.16 Does he really believe what he claims?
45:24.68 Mental illness
50:17.96 Chain of command on site
52:14.69 Conclusion
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Marcia Norman is reported missing on April 4 after family and friends realize nobody has seen the 82-year-old since April 1. Investigators find her cars in the driveway, but it seems as though the grandmother was taken in the middle of washing the dishes. Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack discuss the case of Marcia Norman and the man accused of her kidnapping and murder, former pastor and convicted child molester, Jeff Zizz.
00:00.00 Introduction
03:33.98 Marcia Norman, 82, missing
08:33.43 Circumstantial evidence
13:09.70 Chemical Castration
19:26.89 Timeline of events
25:32.28 Who was watching Jeff Zizz
30:02.29 Condition of body in cement
35:07.07 Description of getting body out of ground
40:01.72 Conclusion
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Juliette Acosta is accused of driving drunk with her four-year-old daughter in the back seat of her vehicle when she crashes into a canal filled with water. As the vehicle fills with water, Acosta, 26, gets out of the vehicle with the help of her uncle, but her daughter Reagan is still in the vehicle. Joseph Scott Morgan and Dave Mack discuss what happened to Reagan Herrin as water filled the vehicle while her mother fled the scene.
Transcript Highlights
00:06.08 Introduction
02:00.52 Abandon child strapped in a car seat
04:56.63 Reagan Herrin, four years old, left in car
09:57.00 Canals carry lots of water
15:22.10 Juliette Acosta crashed vehicle into a canal
20:24.56 Mother charged with murder
24:49.33 Deputy arrives and pulls girl out of vehicle
28:36.66 Discussion of pictures of Reagan
33:33.62 What will the water do in the vehicle
37:07.22 Reagan was pulled out of vehicle, deputy immediately began performing CPR
42:58.41 Conclusion
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Our TOPPODCAST Picks 
